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drawn, says, I am quoting: "The salary or
compensation of any public officer shall not
be decreased during his term of office."
During your experience has that ever
been construed to mean that the salary of
the president of the University of Mary-
land, for example, could not be decreased
if there were a general budget cut of, say,
ten percent across the board?
I have always been under the impression,
but I am not clear in my own mind about
this, that that particular phrase relates to
salaries of public officers which are estab-
lished in the statutes, but not to salaries
where the governor may give an incremen-
tal raise from time to time to certain
people who are public officers.
I have always been under the impression,
and again I could be mistaken, that the
budget director has thought that these sal-
aries, where they are not established by
law, and where the legislature has not
focused attention on them, could be cut
along with everything else in the depart-
ment.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate James.
DELEGATE JAMES: I think you are
probably correct. I think that the term
"public officer" has received various in-
terpretations by the attorney general's of-
fice, and I think you have to come within
that technical definition: you have to take
note, you have to meet the judicial test be-
fore you come within that provision.
I do not think the president of the Uni-
versity of Maryland would come within
that provision, and many people who we
may think are public officers may not be.
THE CHAIRMAN: Delegate Case.
DELEGATE CASE: Mr. Chairman, then
I would ask the Chairman of my Commit-
tee if he would not, in his wisdom, recon-
sider his position?
The intention of the State Finance Com-
mittee and of the commission itself and
certainly of myself in writing this lan-
guage, was to preserve the status quo, and
I am afraid without researching the ques-
tion I am going to have to go on my im-
pressions as much as on Delegate James'.
What Delegate Bamberger's language would
do would be to change the present situation.
Now, there is no question, of course, that
the intention of the Committee is to confine
this particular clause to State, as dis-
tinguished from county or local political
subdivision officers. There is no question
about that.
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But what is meant by the words "salary
and compensation" bothers me a little, and
I would suggest that hopefully the amend-
ment would be withdrawn until perhaps
greater research could be done on the prob-
lem. I do not think, for example, that if
the law is now as I understand it, the gov-
ernor could in the case of an emergency,
for example, desire to make a ten or fifteen
percent across-the-board cut. This has been
done. It was done in the depression, I am
told, and I know it was done in the federal
government.
I am not sure that this would permit a
complete activation of that policy, and I
would think that it would not be desirable
to have this limiting amendment in the
document.
THE CHAIRMAN: May the Chair sug-
gest that Delegate Bamberger consent to
have his amendment laid aside for the mo-
ment? I have sent for the Annotated Code,
and perhaps Mr. Lewis can take a look
at the Code. Would that be satisfactory?
DELEGATE BAMBERGER: Yes.
THE CHAIRMAN: Are there any fur-
ther amendments to section 0.07?
(There was no response.)
The Chair hears none.
Are there any amendments to section
0.08?
(There was no response.)
The Chair hears none.
Are there any amendments to section
0.09?
(There was no response.)
The Chair hears none.
Are there any amendments to section
0.10?
(There was no response.)
The Chair hears none.
Are there any amendments to 0.11?
(There was no response.)
The Chair hears none.
Delegate Beatrice Miller.
DELEGATE B. MILLER: I have a
question for clarification, please, sir.
THE CHAIRMAN: State the question.
DELEGATE B. MILLER: Is it the in-
tention of the Committee that the budget
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